Photographic-printing machine.



F. 0. PARSONS.

PHOTOGBAPHIG PRINTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION rum) H1117, 1910.

Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

F. 0. PARSONS.

PHOTOGHAPHIG PRINTING MACHINE.

APPLIOATION FILED FEB. 17, 1910. 977,543. Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

3 BHEETS-SKEET 2.

if 53 Z 1 F. 0. PARSONS.

PHOTOGRAPHIO PRINTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED PER. 17. 1910. 977,543. Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3 .lil

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THE NORRIS PETERS ca, WASHINGTON, n. c.

FRED O. PARSONS, OF SPIRIT LAKE, IOWA.

PHOTOGRAPHIC-PRINTING MACHINE.

Application filed February 17, 1910.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

Serial No. 544,942.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRED O. Parsons, a citizen of the United States,residing at Spirit Lake, in the county of Dickinson and State of Iowa,have invented a new and useful Photographic-Printing Machine, of whichthe following is a specification.

The object of this invention is to provide an improved construction forphotographic printing machines.

A further object of this invention is to provide an improvedconstruction for photo graphic printing frames and means for mountingsaid frame during an exposure.

A further object of this invention is to provide improved means foreffecting an exposure and making prints from films or plates in aphotographic printing frame.

A further object of this invention is to provide improved means forsecuring a mask in proper relation to a film or plate in a photographicprinting frame. q

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combinationof elements hereinafter set forth, pointed out in my claims andillustrated by the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is aperspective showing the front of the complete machine, placed in frontof a curtain and ready for use. Fig. 2 is a perspective of the rear ofthe machine, the printing frame being removed and the screen partiallylowered. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the printing frame, dotted linesshowing the door in open position. Fig. 4 is a rear elevation of thefront portion of the printing frame. Fig. 5 is a rear elevation of theback portion of the printing frame. Fig. 6 is a front elevation of therear portion of the printing frame, showing a mat thereon containing aplate and a mask partially covering said plate, a portion of the maskbeing cut away to show the mat and plate therein, and a portion of themat cut away to show the rear glass of the printing frame. Fig. 7 is alongitudinal section on the indicated line 7-7 of Fig. 1, looking to theright. Fig. 8 is a longitudinal section on the indicated line 88 of Fig.1, looking in the same direction. Fig. 9 is a cross-section on theindicated line 99 of Fig. 2. Fig. 10 is a longitudinal section similarto Fig. 8 of the lower portion of a printing device of smaller size thanthat shown in the other figures, showing the means of supporting saidframe on the stand. Fig. 11 is a cross-section on the indicated line1111 of Fig. 1, on an enlarged scale.

In the construction and mounting of the device as shown a stand or table10 is employed and said stand is formed with legs 10, 11, 12, 13 and atop 1 1. A cross bar 15 rigidly connects the legs 10, 11 adjacent theirlower ends and cross bars 16, 17 rigidly conneat and brace the legs 12and 13. A cross bar 18 connects the legs 11 and 12 and a cross bar 19connects the legs 10 and 13. A box or compartment 20 may be formed beneath the top 14 by means of boards secured to said legs and top, and adoor 21 may be hinged thereto. The box 20 will be convenient for holdingmaterial to be used with the machine; and when the door 21 thereof isopen it forms a convenient shelf. Standards 22, 2S fixed to and riseabove the rear side of the top 1%, and said standards are braced attheir lower ends to the cross bar 17. A cross bar 2 1 is fixed betweenthe upper ends of and rigidly connects the standards 22, 23. A cross bar25 may also connect and brace the standards 22, 23 adjacent the top 1A.of the stand. The standards 22, 23 are grooved longitudinally on theirinner faces, and an opaque screen 26 of any suitable material is mountedfor vertical reciprocation in one set of said grooves. Other screens(not shown) of different material or suitable for use under varyingconditions are or may be mounted in the remaining grooves of thestandards 22, 23, and said screens are held in position by springs 26 onthe standards. A treadle 27 is hinged at its lower end to the centralportion of the cross bar 15. Lazy-tongs 28 are fixed at their upper endcentrally to the lower portion of the screen 26 and at their lower endto the central portion of the cross bar 16. A strap 29 is fixed at itslower end to the upper end portion of the treadle 27 and said strap isfixed at its upper end to the point of intersection 30 of the secondpair of arms of the lazy-tongs 28. The strap 29 is also fixedintermediate of its ends to the point of intersection 31 of the thirdpair of arms of the lazy-tongs 28. The strap 29 may be provided with abuckle for the purpose of lengthening and shortening said strap whendesired. It is the function of the trea dle 27, through its connectionswith the lazy-tongs 28, to lower the screen 26 in the standards 3 bymeans of foot pressure applied to said treadle. A retractile coil springconnects the lower end portions of the upper pair of arms of thelazytongs 28, at the points of pivoting of said arms to the upper endportions of the second pair of arms thereof. A retractile coil spring34: connects the pivotal points of connection of the lower pair of armsof said lazy-tongs with the pair of arms adjacent thereto. It is thefunction of the springs 33, 34 to expand the lazy-tongs vertically afterfoot pressure has been removed from the treadle 2?, thus forcing thescreen 26 back to its original elevated position.

With the stand above described I employ a printing frame 35, and saidprinting frame is adapted to be mounted on and carried by the standards22, 23 of said stand as hereinafter described. The printing frame 35 iscomposed of a front portion and a back portion, illustrated in Figs. 4and 5 respectively. The back portion of said printing frame is composedof side pieces 36, 87 and end pieces 38, 39. beveled on the inner edgesof their back side", said side and end pieces constitutin a frame inwhich is mounted a piece of ordinary window glass 40. Clamping hooks t1,t2 are fixed to the end piece 58 and rise above the plane of the backportion of said printing frame, and similar clamping hooks i3, l arefixed to and rise from the end piece 39. Posts L5, 46 are screwed intothe outer edge of the side piece 37 and rise perpendicular to the planeof the front side of the rear portion of the frame 35. The posts 45, 46are slightly spaced from the outer margin of the side piece 37.

The front portion of the frame 35 is composed of side pieces +17, 4-8and end pieces $9, 50, the side piece 47 being hinged to the end piecese9, 50 by means of hinges 51, and the other connections between saidside and end pieces being rigid. The side pieces l7 and 48 are formedwith notches 53 and fit at their ends to receive the clamping hooks at.st?) and L2, est respectively of the back portion of the printing frame.Spring clamps 55, 56 are pivoted at one end each on the front side ofthe side piece t? and are adapted to engage with the clamping hooks 42,it when the front portion is in position on the back portion of saidprinting frame. and similar spring clamps 57. are pivoted on the sidepiece 48 and are adapted to engage with the clamping hooks 4:1, 23 onthe side piece 36. It is the function of the spring clamps, when inengagement with the clamping hooks, to hold the front and back portionsof the printing frame firmly together in intimate contact. A door 59 ishinged to the side piece 47 of the front portion of the frame 35. and isadapted to close the opening formed by the side pieces e7, 48 and endpieces 49, A latch (30 is pivoted at its inner end on the door 59 andthe outer end of said latch projects beyond the forward margin of saiddoor and is adapted to be engaged by a catch (31 on the side piece etS,for the purpose of fastening said door. A keeper (32 on the door 59limits movement of the latch 60. A knob 63 is formed on or fixed to theouter end of said latch for convenience of manual actuation thereof.Ears 64;, 65 are fixed to the back side of the side piece 4:? andproject laterally therefrom. The ears 6t, 65 are formed with aperturesadapted to fit over and receive the upper end portions of the posts to,46 respectively, thus holding the front portion in proper position whenit is placed on the back portion of the printing frame.

A mat ($6 is provided and is formed of cardboard or some similarmaterial, and of the approximate thickness of a negative (37 to be usedand adapted to be contained therein. When a negative of different sizeis to be used a different mat will be employed. The mat is adapted to beplaced upon the back portion of the frame 35 and hold the negative inproper position for printing, but such matis used only when the negativeto be printed is smaller than the opening for the door 59. When thenegative is larger than said opening it will be held in place betweenthe front and back portions of the frame and no niat will be necessary.A mask 68, of any suitable ma terial, is employed and is provided withan opening of the desired size and shape to determine the border of thepicture to be printed from the negative (37. The mask 68 is providedwith apertures 69. T0 in its left margin adapted to fit over the upperend portions of the posts to, 46 and hold said mask in the desiredposition relatively to the negative 67. It is to be understood that anynumber of masks, formed with openings of any desired size and shape, maybe employed with this machine.

Spring guides 74; are fixed to the back side 1 of the front portion ofthe frame 35, on the side piece 47 and end piece 50, and projectslightly within the inner margin of said side piece and end piece. Thespring guides 74 (Fig. 12) are formed of wire with ahook at one endembedded in the side 01' end piece of the front portion of the frame Theguides H lie in transverse holes 7% in said side 01' end pieces, andsaid holes are relatively large in diameter to permit the springs 74 tobe pressed forwardly therein. The spring guides 74: are bent back atright angles near their free ends adjacentthe inner margins of the sideor end pieces in which they lie. It is the function of the spring guidesH to act as feed guides against which a sheet of sensitized paper to beprinted from the negative (37 may be placed, and said guides determinethe position of such paper relatively to said negative. An ejectingspring 75 is fixed to the inner margin of the end piece 50 and isadapted to eject the print when the door 59 is opened, or at least raisesaid print so that it can be quickly and easily grasped and removedmanually. The front face of the front portion of the frame 35 is formedwith a depression or sink 76 at the point of junction of the side piece48 and end piece 49, for convenience in manually removing a print orpaper which extends up to the upper right corner of said frame. A pin 78is fixed in and projects above the upper end portion of the end piece 38of the back portion of the frame In the practical use of this machinethe back portion of the frame 35 is laid on its back and the negative67, within the mat 66 if a matis to be used, is placed thereon next tothe glass 40. Then the mask 68 is placed thereon, the apertures 69, 70fitting over the posts 45, 46, and the negative adjusted beneath theopening in the mask 68. The front portion of the frame 35 is thensuperposed upon said back portion, the apertures in the cars 64, 65engaging the posts 45, 46, and said front and back por tions aresecurely fastened together by engagement of the spring clamps 55, 56,57, 58 with the clamping hooks 42, 44, 41, 43. The door 59 is thenopened and a piece of sensitized paper is placed in proper positionagainst the negative 67 and mask 68. The paper to be printed is placedin the lower left corner of the frame, against the spring guides 74, andabove the ejecting spring 7 5 in case a mask is to be used, otherwisebehind said ejector. The ejector 75 is used principally in rapidprinting, such as of post cards, and its function is to raise the printso that said print can be quickly and easily removed manually. Whenthere is to be no margin on the picture, as when no mask is used, it isbetter not to employ the ejector 75, as its use will leave a white orunprinted spot on the edge of the face of the print. The door is thenclosed and fastened by means of the latch and catch 61, and the frame 35is ready to be mounted on the stand 10. Such mounting is accomplished asfollows: Hooks 79, one of which is shown in Fig. 1, are fixed to thefront sides of the standards 22, 23, a short distance above the top 14.A spring clip 80 is fixed to the top of the cross bar 24 and extendsforwardly therefrom. The hooks 79 are adapted to engage and support thelower end portion of the frame 35, and an aperture in the spring clip 80is adapted to fitover and hold the pin 78 in the top of the frame, thusmounting the frame 35 securely on the stand 10. The stand 10, with theframe 35 mounted thereon, is placed before a window or other source oflight over which a curtain 81 is drawn. The curtain 81 is formed with ahole or aperture of the proper size and at the proper height to effectan exposure of the negative in the frame 35 when mounted on the stand10. The curtain 81 may be held in contact with said standards in anydesired manner, such as by buttoning to knobs 83 on the rear facesthereof. The exposure is effected by means of foot pressure ap 'ilied bythe operator upon the treadle 27, such pressure acting, through thestrap 29, to expand the lazy tongs 28 laterally, against the resilienceof the springs 33, 34, and draw the screen 26 downwardly, leaving theprinting frame 35 in juxtaposition to the aperture in the curtain 81.When such exposure has continued for the desired length of time, footpressure is released from the treadle 27, thus allowing the lazy-tongs28 to expand vertically under the influence of the springs 33, 34 andforce the screen 26 upwardly to close the aperture in the curtain 81.The door 59 is opened, the print removed, and another piece ofsensitized paper inserted if desired. The printing frame 35 can, ofcourse, be used independently of the stand 10 by holding in the hand oras ordinary printing frames are used. It will be observed that the useof posts 45, 46 and apertured ears 64, on the printing frame renderssuch frame adjustable to the use of either films or plates of differentthickness.

To allow of the use of asinaller printing frame 35 with the stand 10 thefollowing construction is provided: The standards 22, 23 are formed withslots 82 in their front faces, at the desired height above the hooks 79.Plates 7 9 are set into the faces of said standards in front of thelower portions of the slots 82. Hooks 79 are fixed to the lower marginof the printing frame 35 (Fig. 10) and said hooks are adapted to bereceived within the slots 82 and behind the plates 7 9 and hold saidprinting frame in such position that the top thereof is flush with thetop of the cross bar 24.

I claim as my invention 1. In a photographic printing machine, a stand,a printing frame mounted on said stand, a screen covering said printingframe, a treadle hinged on the lower portion of said stand, lazy-tongsconnected at one end to the stand and at the other end to the lowerportion of said screen, flexible connections between said treadle andlazy-tongs, said screen spring-held in elevated position and adapted tobe lowered by foot pressure applied to said treadle.

2. In a photographic printing machine, a stand and a printing frame,said stand comprising legs, braces between said legs, a top, standardsrising above said top, a screen mounted for vertical reciprocationbetween said standards, lazy-tongs fixed to and de pending from thelower end portion of said screen and fixed at the lower end to saidstand, a treadle hinged to the lower portion of said stand, a strapfixed to and depending from said lazy-tongs, said strap fixed at itslower end to said treadle, springs holding said lazy-tongs in extendedvertical position, and means for holding said printing frame on saidstandards before said screen.

3. A photographic printing machine, com prising a stand and a printingframe, said stand formed with legs and a top, grooved standards fixed toand rising from said top, a box under said top, a screen mounted forvertical sliding movement in the grooves of said standards, a crosspiece on the lower portions and connecting the front legs of said stand,a treadle hinged to said cross piece, lazy-tongs fixed to and dependingfrom the lower end portion of said screen and fixed at the lower end tosaid stand, a strap adjustably fixed to said lazy-tongs and limitvertical expansion of said lazy-tongs, springs on said lazy-tongsadapted to limit lateral expansion thereof, said strap fixed at itslower end to the upper end portion of said treadle, a cross bar fixed toand rigidly connecting the upper end portions of said standards, anapertured spring clip on and extending forwardly from said cross bar,hooks on the front surfaces of said standards above the top of saidstand, said hooks adapted to engage the lower portion of and supportsaid printing frame, and a pin on the upper end portion of said printingframe adapted to be engaged by the aperture in said spring clip.

at. In a photographic printing machine, a

printing frame formed with front and back portions, said back portionbeing rigid, said front portion formed of a rail adapted to be clampedat its ends to the back portion, a three-sided frame hinged to said railand adapted to be clamped independently of the rail to the back portion,and a door hinged to said rail and adapted to be latched in closedposition.

5. In a photographic printing machine, a printing frame formed withfront and back portions, said back portion comprising a rigid frame anda glass within sald frame, said front portion comprising a rail, a threesided frame hinged to said rail and a door hinged to said rail andclosably within said three-sided frame, clamp hooks fixed t0 and risingfrom said back portion, and independent spring clamps fixed to said railand three sided frame and adapted to engage said clamp hooks. dependingtherefrom, said strap adapted to (3. In a photographic printing machine,a printing frame formed with separable front and back portions, postsrising from said back portion, apertured ears on said front portionadapted to engage said posts, clamp hooks fixed to and rising from saidback portion, spring clamps pivoted on said front portion and adapted toengage said clamps hooks, a door hinged in said front portion, paperfeed guides in said front portion adjacent the margin of said door, anda paper ejector fixed in said front portion adjacent the margin of saiddoor.

FRED O. PARSONS. lVitnesses C. W. PRICE, G. S. PARSONS.

